


let's give it a minute (before we admit that we're through)

by nomadicbeard



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Steve is sad, Tony returns to Earth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-12-30 15:26:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18318044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nomadicbeard/pseuds/nomadicbeard
Summary: Steve suddenly realises the giant assumption he made, coming back to New York, to the compound; as if he belonged here. How wrong he was. He sees it in the way Tony’s eyes narrow, slip to the side and away, his fists clenching and unclenching at his side.





	let's give it a minute (before we admit that we're through)

**Author's Note:**

> Something I wrote on my tumblr a couple of weeks ago. I'm trying to get my writing all sorted out so I'm just transferring this onto here. 
> 
> Unbetaed. We write like men. 
> 
> Lyrics from Hard Feelings by Lorde. When will I stop taking titles from songs? Never. When will I stop putting brackets in my song titles? Also never. Welcome to my hell.

Steve paces around the perimeter of the landing pad, round and round, again and again; he walks the same two hundred and eighty nine steps it takes to encircle it all.

He can’t sit still, not now.  

“She’s taking too long,” Steve says. His words sound impatient, pitiful. As if he is really just hoping beyond hoping.

_Come on Tony, tell me you made it._

“I would not worry Steven,” Thor says, “Her gift is powerful, if she can find the Man of Iron, she will.”

Steve opens his mouth to respond but he’s interrupted by a supersonic whine, only just within the range of Steve’s enhanced hearing. A beam of light falls from the sky in a graceful arc, striking the centre of the platform. Lightning spills out from the beam, fizzling and dancing across the dull concrete.

Clint jumps back and swears, Nat barely blinks. Thor laughs, clapping Steve on the back, “Remarkable, this one.”

Steve just watches, wide-eyed and waiting.

Carol emerges from the centre of the blur, her eyes a deadly grace of white. She pulls two more figures from the shifting light behind her. One is a blue robot, bizarre, but a problem that Steve can't focus on right now, not when his eyes flicker over to the second of Carol's passengers. 

Tony’s eyes land on Steve and widen. Distantly, Steve registers that they are really truly an incredible shade of brown.

More immediately, he sees the way Tony’s brow furrows, the way his mouth gapes as if for the first time he is truly lost for words.

Steve suddenly realises the giant assumption he made, coming back to New York, to the compound; as if he belonged here. How wrong he was. He sees it in the way Tony’s eyes narrow, slip to the side and away, his fists clenching and unclenching at his side.

“I found him,” Carol says, her voice a tone Steve would have described as near-smug. “Idiot was in a broken-down spaceship, two hours to total oxygen failure.”

Steve sucks in a sharp breath, looking at Tony, begging him to meet his eyes.

Tony avoids his gaze, looking over Steve’s shoulder instead, where Steve knows the compound looms large on the horizon. “So then,” he says, his voice terribly blasé, “What’s the plan?”

* * *

Tony evades him.

It’s not the first time it’s happened, but the other times all belong to the past, back when they all lived in the Tower and the only secrets between them were who had eaten the last of the Pop Tarts (Thor, it was Thor every time).

Steve finally catches Tony alone the third day after his retrieval. He’s by the large observation deck, overlooking the old hanger. Sunset tinges the sky with orange and gold, the beautiful last remnants of a dying day.

Steve keeps his footsteps soft, as if approaching a shy animal. He walks right up to the railing, an inch away from Tony’s side. Tony doesn’t even flinch. In fact, he doesn't acknowledges Steve's presence at all, continuing to stare out across the hanger, his eyes dark with thought.

“Hey,” Steve says softly,

Tony just shrugs, “What do you want Rogers?”

“I-“ the words, free of any real direction, wither and die in Steve’s mouth. He clears his throat, “I just haven’t seen you since you got back. I wanted to check up on how you were getting on.”

Tony raises his eyebrows, still staring out across the hanger, “Really?” he asks.

“I cared about you,” Steve says, “I still care about you, is that too much to believe?”

Tony lets out a long sigh, leaning against the railing “Can we not do this right now?”

“Then when do you want to do it Tony?” Steve asks, turning to face him directly. “We need to talk.”

“Talking won’t help.”

“I just want to fix what we had,” Steve says, desperate.

Tony throws his head back, laughs, “What we had? We were over before we started Rogers. Whatever there was between us, it’s not there now. It’s over.”

Steve reaches out, slowly, telegraphing his movements. Tony doesn’t move or slap his hand away. He just stands there, meeting Steve’s gaze dead-on, seeing who can blink first.

Steve stands there, his hand on Tony’s cheek. He rubs his thumb down the line of Tony’s goatee and Tony sighs, he melts into it, closes his eyes.

There’s one, two, three cherished breaths in that frozen moment. Then, Tony opens his eyes, that gorgeous shade of brown piercing Steve once more. He exhales, steps back and away.

“It’s over Steve.”

Steve lets his hand drop, tries to keep it steady. “I understand.”

Tony shakes his head, “I-we were going somewhere once, maybe. But I can never go there again. You broke that.”

Steve nods, it takes a great effort. His muscles feel like lead, dragging him down the the ever-more tempting concrete floor. “Okay.”

A beat, two. Tony give him a long look, “Okay.”

They stand there for an eternity, Steve can’t seem to tear himself away.

“I’m going to go…” Tony jabs a thumb over his shoulder, towards the entrance back to the compound.

“I’m sorry,” Steve says in an exhaled rush. Too dramatic, too weighted, but real all the same.

Tony attempts a half-smile, the corners of his lips twitching up ever so slightly. “I know.”

Steve indulges in a second more of their shared silence before he mentally shakes himself, “I should go.”

“So should I,” Tony says, he turns his back to Steve with an ease that makes Steve’s heart clench with envy and begins to walk to the door back to the compound. “Places to go, people to save. The usual.”

Steve laughs, a soft huff, “The usual.”

“Oh and Rogers?” Tony calls over his shoulder. “Shave that beard off. It looks ridiculous.”

Steve reaches up, feeling the coarseness of the hair with the pads of his fingers.

Perhaps there was time for a shave before they saved the world.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! If you've sent me a prompt on my tumblr: they are all slowly getting written. My final exams are in five weeks but after that I'm all of you's writing slave. Feel free to send me prompts at: [nomadicbeard on tumblr](https://nomadicbeard.tumblr.com). I will get around to them eventually.
> 
> As always, feedback and constructive criticism is always appreciated!


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